Saturday strolls: Ela Canela, Campo de Ourique

Campo de Ourique is already one of our favourite Lisbon neighbourhoods and last weekend we found one more reason to love it in the form of Ela Canela, a lovely local brunch and lunch spot. 

We’d passed Ela Canela a couple of times, en route to the wonderful Campo de Ourique food market, and had kept meaning to check it out, but it wasn’t until Soraia recommended it to me that we finally popped in for a visit – and I’m so glad we did. 

With a focus on seasonal and organic produce, the team works with local producers to source their ingredients and uses cooking methods designed to preserve and enhance a much of the natural flavour as possible, all while avoid refined sugar and dairy (neither of which we missed).

Each dish was delicious in a gentle, understated way, letting the freshness of the ingredients speak for themselves. We kicked things off with a home-made hummus and toasted rye bread (above right). Then, Ben had a yum chicken salad (below right – and how sweet is that dish?).

I tucked into a sweet potato, avocado and poached egg dish, with a side of watermelon and ginger juice.

Afterwards, we split a cool cashew, dark chocolate and mint tart that tasted like the inside of an After Eight. 

We then took a stroll through the area and bookmarked a couple of places to return to (including a gorgeous-looking bakery, a sweet florist and a yum cheese, cured meat and craft beer shop) before making our way to the nearby Jardim da Estrela to chill and read amidst its leafy shade. There’s already a ton we love to do in this ‘hood, so look out for another post on it soon, and hit me up if you have any questions.

Ela Canela
R. Azedo Gneco 74B, 1350-039 Lisboa
elacanela.pt

Top pic of me Instagramming on the go by Ben.

PS If you’re into learning more about what we’re up to here in Lisbon, Ben and I have a (semi-regular!) newsletter called Dispatches from Lisbon – it’s mostly personal updates for family and friends, with a few favourite finds and recommendations thrown in. You can sign up for it here.